The grout I have used so far has been Davco but I have heard a lot of people swear by Laticrete. Many are incredibly enthusiastic about the stuff but the mysterious numbers have gotten to me a bit. So I hit the Laticrete site, went through the mailing lists a little and here are some things that those in the know do with the stuff:
Thinset #1: 4237 Latex Mortar Admix mixed with 211 Crete Filler Powder powder to make strong thinset . 211 comes in grey or cream.
Thinset #2: 4237 mixed with any Laticrete sanded grout to make thinset. This would be fantastic for doing the indirect method as it wouldn’t matter if the thinset squishes between the tesserae as the colour would be a perfect match to your later grout.
Laticrete Epoxy system ie Spectralock does not crack or yellow. Its a 3 part system and treat it as as being noxious due to the epoxy. It can irritate the heck out of body parts so wear full safety gear and cover up. And don’t be tempted to use the Part C as a substitute for sanded grout when doing the 4237 + sanded grout to make thinset trick.
LATICRETE® 1776 Flexible Grout Fortifier is an admix which seems incredibly popular.It is easy to use and more importantly to clean up [with water] and is designed for cement based grouts. It can be used indoors and outdoors, is non-toxic, fast setting, non-flammable. You use it instead of water with your grout. Just don’t take too long in cleaning it off due to the fast-setting quality!
If you are mosaicking on wood remember to get a flexible grout to allow for expansion. Adding 1776 to a sanded grout would suffice.
LATICRETE® 9237 Liquid Waterproof Membrane aka Black Goo seems to be becoming superseded by LATICRETE® 9240 Liquid Waterproof Membrane aka Green Slime.
Re sanded grouts, the floor grout Floor Grout, 500 Series, Sanded Grout for Joints Over 2mm comes highly recommended. Don’t bother with unsanded grout unless you are feeling particularly masochistic.
From MakeMineMosaic Blogspot:
The secret code of Laticrete
August 12th, 2006 at 2:56 am (Uncategorized, Other, Technique, Mosaic, Tools and Tips, Adhesive, Mosaic supplies, Grout)The grout I have used so far has been Davco but I have heard a lot of people swear by Laticrete. Many are incredibly enthusiastic about the stuff but the mysterious numbers have gotten to me a bit. So I hit the Laticrete site, went through the mailing lists a little and here are some things that those in the know do with the stuff:
- Thinset #1: 4237 Latex Mortar Admix mixed with 211 Crete Filler Powder powder to make strong thinset . 211 comes in grey or cream.
- Thinset #2: 4237 mixed with any Laticrete sanded grout to make thinset. This would be fantastic for doing the indirect method as it wouldn’t matter if the thinset squishes between the tesserae as the colour would be a perfect match to your later grout.
- Laticrete Epoxy system ie Spectralock does not crack or yellow. Its a 3 part system and treat it as as being noxious due to the epoxy. It can irritate the heck out of body parts so wear full safety gear and cover up. And don’t be tempted to use the Part C as a substitute for sanded grout when doing the 4237 + sanded grout to make thinset trick.
- LATICRETE® 1776 Flexible Grout Fortifier is an admix which seems incredibly popular.It is easy to use and more importantly to clean up [with water] and is designed for cement based grouts. It can be used indoors and outdoors, is non-toxic, fast setting, non-flammable. You use it instead of water with your grout. Just don’t take too long in cleaning it off due to the fast-setting quality!
- If you are mosaicking on wood remember to get a flexible grout to allow for expansion. Adding 1776 to a sanded grout would suffice.
- LATICRETE® 9237 Liquid Waterproof Membrane aka Black Goo seems to be becoming superseded by LATICRETE® 9240 Liquid Waterproof Membrane aka Green Slime.
- Re sanded grouts, the floor grout Floor Grout, 500 Series, Sanded Grout for Joints Over 2mm comes highly recommended. Don’t bother with unsanded grout unless you are feeling particularly masochistic.
So hopefully this helps out when you hear people talk about Laticrete followed by some mysterious number.Interpreting those product numbers and finding product information
Laticrete websites: